7shifts Survey: Top Trends in Restaurant Labor Management (Infographic)

Sixty percent of restaurants saw their labor costs increase in 2019 and 50 percent of respondents expect their labor costs to rise in 2020 and beyond, according to a survey of more than 1,000 restaurant managers, owners, and executives across North America conducted by 7shifts.  Other key statistics from the study include:

The largest percentage of respondents (nearly 46 percent) said they would be investing in team building activities in 2020 in order to engage and retain employees, compared to other strategies like competitive pay and professional development that would potentially increase labor costs.  28 percent of survey participants said that high labor costs were their biggest restaurant challenge of 2019, with 33 percent of restaurant owner respondents predicting that high labor costs will remain their biggest hurdle in 2020. 64 percent of survey respondents said that they will increase menu prices in order to counter minimum wage increases due to new, local wage…